


La Mer - Somewhere

by V_M_nanowriter



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Beyond the Sea, F/M, Gratuitous French, High School, La Mer, Music, Somewhere, Songfic, sorry about that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-09-21
Updated: 2012-09-21
Packaged: 2017-11-14 18:57:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/518464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/V_M_nanowriter/pseuds/V_M_nanowriter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Two people looking for affection from the wrong sides of one another, and two sides of the same song. Funny how these things never match up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	La Mer - Somewhere

By the time M. Meminger was nearly ten complete minutes late for small-group voice lessons,  Marinette and five other sopranos were left with the only option that a private room with the large band instruments, bookcases of sheet music, and a nicely tuned piano to themselves: to make a very, very, very loud music.

 

This was the crime Felix was called upon to rectify by a junior with an unhealthy obsession with Mozart and overall dissatisfaction with the sound-proofing of the music rooms. As Felix entered Band Room 2, he held a clip board with the class roster with one familiar freshman name, and he only realized why when he lowered the roster and saw a giggling black haired girl jumping in as the extreme high end of a four-part rendition of Heart and Soul.

 

“ _Quel est le sens de tout cela?_ ” he asked. “What is the meaning of all this?” Lucille slid the timpani mallets behind her back, the other girls jumped back from the piano immediately, leaving Marinette to fall heavily on the keys with an ungraceful _BLAAAANG_ and the least criminal member of their sextet standing to the side looking guilty.

 

“ _C'est assez simple_ ,” said Mimi, standing with a smile. “The Kraut is out, so we are teaching ourselves today. Or would M. Dupont rather we wasted our musical talents on humming scales at the walls?”

 

Marinette made more noise getting off of the piano than she intended, face flaring as she stepped into line with the others.

 

“There are a few students on this hall who would wish nothing more,” Felix answered. “Do none of you own a handbook? If your teacher is late or does not show up, you wait quietly, like proper students. Then, if your teacher still does not arrive and the office says nothing, you notify your authorities and go to the library and study until your next class.”

 

Felix used his father’s voice as he spoke: cool and commanding, every syllable a reminder of whatever failing was being discussed. Except such basic mistakes had been trained out of him in primary school, while these girls still apparently had a lot to learn about basic rules.

 

“And waste a perfectly good class period, practice time, and piano!” Mimi snapped, hands immediately on her hips.

 

Her exaggerated poses, bright red lipstick, and monochromatic wardrobe (stripes, with a beret leaning heavily with her wavy hair) reminded Felix of a mime. A mime who really didn’t grasp their saving grace: utter silence.

 

“Actually,” said Yassi, a girl in yellow next to Marinette, “We will be tested soon, and M. Meminger usually has us warm up on our own. We really were just about to start singing. Listen to us if you don’t believe we are studying!”

 

Felix didn’t mention the would-be timpanist. Some shots are too easy for a gentleman.

 

“And wouldn’t that be a more efficient use of time than just going to the library?” chirped Sophie. “At least we will have been annoying others in order to practice, instead of annoying them to annoy them.”

 

“Yes,” added Mimi, taking a step towards Felix and pouting with watery eyes. “Really, if you stop us now, it will all have been for nothing— _rien!_ ”

 

Felix wanted to leave, because leaving would mean it was no longer his problem. But at the very least he must perform some level of duty first. And with such a group of obnoxious girls, giving them what they wanted would likely be the quickest way to that…

 

“Fine,” he said. “One of you sing, if you must be singing for a test soon. And then if I hear more complaints, I will see that each of you is equally punished. So, sing.”

 

“Nose goes,” Sophie said and put a quick finger to the tip of her nose.

 

_She really is slow,_ Felix thought as he watched all the other girls respond as the Cheng girl startled and looked at the others before trying to bring her hand up, touching her nose last. She looked sad for only a second, and then smiled at Felix.

 

“Anything you would like to hear?” she asked.

 

“Just whatever you have to sing for your test. I have duties to get to,” he added, tapping the clip board.

 

Marinette nodded, shuffled the music on the upright piano, and sat. “Ahem…”

 

She began to play, and the chords were familiar. Felix was, however, more used to hearing the tune with more brass in the bandstand.

 

_“La mer… Qu'on voit danser le long des golfes clairs, A des reflets d'argent…”_

 

…And once she stared singing, he amended it to “more brass and much more accomplished vocalists.”

 

“Yes, well, you may certainly go on practicing, as long as you are using the room in order to improve your performances.” He turned. He left.

 

 -     -     -

 

“My performance couldn’t have been _that_ bad,” Lady Bug mumbled to herself on a quiet rooftop, toeing around pigeon droppings.

 

_I mean… certainly, I’m not the_ best _singer… but to hear less than half the song and just leave? Well, he probably had some place to be… And I’ll just make Professor practice twice as hard with me next class! He’s probably just used to better singers anyway…_

She was usually so good at putting Marinette away when it was time to be Lady Bug. Usually, it wasn’t even a thought. She wanted to be Lady Bug, to help people, to be something more than a schoolgirl for a while.

 

And as frustrating as it was, Marinette just would not be put away tonight. It was all she could do not to talk to herself all night about all the reasons Felix might have had to do something so unintentionally hurtful, and she really didn’t have business being hurt anyway, especially since it could only be unintentional, and he really couldn’t be so cruel on purpose, and it wasn’t being cruel if it was merely being honest, and she honestly did need practice and the room was there just for them to practice anyway, with or without the German Taskmaster.

 

But talking to herself would only make things worse. She had no idea where that great big cat was, and stewing in her own self-absorbed thoughts all day and into the night certainly didn’t have her feeling too altruistic or lucky.

 

“And I certainly wouldn’t want to run into that cat tonight…”

 

“Speaking of me, _mon chére_?”

 

_Yep. Definitely not going out when I feel mopey again. It brings nothing but bad luck._

“And what has you so put-down this evening?” he asked, sidling up towards her on the rooftop with both hands behind his back.

 

“Why, nothing at all,” she answered, looking for exits. She didn’t want to jump, feeling as unlucky as she did… And things would only get worse if she kept lying for herself. For now, stalling, then the fire escape, then the park in case someone was walking home alone and needed a little luck to save the day…

 

“Ah, don’t lie to a black cat, _mon chérie_ ,” he said, diverting to the side and leaning against a green copper-covered gable. “It only brings bad luck, and I’d never want that for you.”

 

Lady Bug had quips, but she felt like using any of them wouldn’t help at all, so she started towards the fire escape and almost immediately found Chat Noir blocking her path.

 

“Oh, please, _mademoiselle bienveillant_! I only wanted to share a song with you—you can spare that at least from your night’s pursuits.” He held a trumpet with a bright nickel finish, jostling the bell at his throat as he brought it up, and there was no mistaking there were script initials stamped in the bell of that shiny, undoubtedly valuable trumpet.

 

“And whom did you steal that from?” she asked.

 

“In the strictest sense, this I actually borrowed,” Chat Noir answered before lowering his lips to the mouthpiece and beginning.

 

At first the tune was utterly unrecognizable from a cat wailing, and then assembled itself into something unpleasantly familiar, with distracting bell tinklings as he tried to move with the music. Chat suffered through a full moaning verse before lowering the trumpet and beginning to sing with a voice that was at the very least average, and in comparison to his playing, downright tolerable.

 

“ _Somewhere… beyond the sea, somewhere, waiting for me… My lover stands on golden sands, and watches the ships—_ ”

 

“Fascinating,” Lady Bug said before risking the maneuver and scaling the nearest steep gable to vault over the side and land on the fire escape, Chat Noir shouting “ _Wait!_ ” after her. It didn’t take terribly much luck to slide down the rails and turn. Unless she was about to twist an ankle. But instead of thinking about twisting ankles, she was thinking about getting to the park, and pointedly _not_ thinking about a certain black cat on her tail. Unfortunately, the cat was quick.

 

“What? Was it the English? Do you dislike the version? Is it the trumpet? It really is borrowed!” he said, going from landing to landing after her.

 

Instead of touching down in the alleyway, Lady Bug chose to jump to limestone ledge the opposite building wore like a yellow belt over a pair of brown pants. After she made the jump and was eye level with the cat and safely removed, she looked at him and answered.

 

“If the trumpet is yours then, I would suggest you get a nice practice room to work on your playing. I wouldn’t dream of distracting you.”

 

She was careful as she ran.

**Author's Note:**

> I've seen enough people complaining about not being able to get their AO3 invites until December that I thought I should actually make use of this one.
> 
> Gosh it's been a long time. I feel like I should revise this at least three times, figure out what needs to be cut, and make it more detailed. As it is there are lots of gaps. Also as it is, I have lots of homework that I'm conveniently ignoring, and that is a problem.
> 
> So, there. I contributed to the fandom something other than those analysis posts I do on Tumblr. I need help, guys.


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